The CW Gets 5,000 Points For ‘Whose Line?’

The only show where the points don’t matter and everything is made up on the spot is back. This time on The CW. Despite a six year absence from television, Whose Line Is It Anyway? never skipped a beat. Drew Carey didn’t come back, but Aisha Tyler holds her own against old favorites, Wayne Brady, Colin Mochrie, and Ryan Stiles.

Fans of the Drew Carey version of Whose Line? will notice that Aisha doesn’t participate in the skits like Drew did. Hopefully, Aisha comes out from behind the desk and joins the gang in later episodes because right now she is funny and clearly not using all of her potential. Those who are used to the UK version where Clive Anderson interacts with the performs, but never leaves his desk probably won’t mind that Aisha doesn’t move.

The games are the same. Scenes From a Hat, Helping Hands, and Let’s Make a Date all made an appearance. The only new game is Sideways Scene, which debuted on Trust Us with Your Life. Everyone has a favorite sketch and many old favorites were played, but neither Hoedown or Irish Drinking Song were mention in the first two episodes, which is disappointing. Drew didn’t always have the gang perform a group song, but it was a frequent part of the show. Hopefully, one or the other makes an appearance soon.

Instead of involving audience members, the new Whose Line? uses celebrity guests. So far, The Walking Dead‘s Lauren Cohan and Glee‘s Kevin McHale have guest starred. Both actors were fantastic and this eliminates the awkward audience member, who was randomly chosen and is very uncomfortable. However, there is something special about an arbitrary person participating in the sketches and enjoying themselves. Hopefully, the celebrity guests will be more sporadic in future episodes, so that viewers get the best of both worlds.

The ubiquitous hashtags at the bottom of the screen add commentary on the sketches. The CW knows that Colin and Ryan have a #bromance. When Kevin McHale from Glee caught a piece of Ryan’s popcorn in his mouth, the network knew everyone was thinking #NiceCatchKevin. When the hashtags aren’t commenting, they are reminding viewers of what the game the performers are playing, which is helpful.

Now that Whose Line? isn’t aired on a Disney owned channel, such as ABC or ABC Family, more dirty jokes are making it past the sensors. During Living Scenery, Colin made a turning motion at hang glider Wayne’s crotch to adjust his tension. There is no way that Disney would have let that fly. On the rare occasion Disney did allow it to air, there was something subversive about that joke. The CW clearly has different standards, which is expected from the network that broadcasts Gossip Girl and The Vampire Diaries. Unfortunately, Whose Line’s? unpredictability no long seems dangerous in context, but at least fans get to see more skits where the performers really shine.